Nature is amazing: Gordian worms

Gordian worms live inside crickets. Once fully grown, they inject chemicals into the cricket’s brain, brainwashing it and forcing it to kill itself by jumping into water. Once in water, the worm wriggles out of the writhing body and swims off in search of a mate.

Jake

Similar story with a type of parasite that lives in mice. This particular parasite can only reproduce inside the stomach of cats. So it manipulates the brains of mice to no longer be scared of cats, but attracted instead. Once the host (mice) are eaten, the parasite can reproduce. Oh the circle of life…

Oli

on 14 Jul 08

If you think that’s bad for crickets, look at this under the “Mental Manipulation” section, bad for rats and not too good for humans either!

Randy Kopplin

reminds me a bit of that one worm we get around this part of the woods – africa – kids get infested with the larvae when they play in polluted water – the larvae gets in through the foot/ankle then grows/makes it way all the way up to the leg till the groin area at which stage it becomes more detectable. it becomes up to a meter long – what’s that, 3 feet?

think that’s rough?

the extraction method is locating the worm and then ‘winding it up’ with a matchstick – basically extracting it as slow as possible to make sure it doesn’t break off. they can only remove a little bit at a time so this process takes weeks to complete..

imagine what that feels like.

(it’s the guinea worm if you want to google it. my story above is as i’ve heard it – not 100% medical fact but good enough to pass along.)

GeorgeM

on 14 Jul 08

It is we who are the parasites! Gobbling up our host, but with no cycle of recovery. Actually, maybe Agent Smith was more accurate—we’re a cancer! Yes, Nature is amazing. Let’s destroy it. hooaahahaah….

Phil McThomas

yeah. i’ve got the shivvers now, and I don’t think it is because of the air conditioning. so, thanks for sharing…. Did you see the episode of “House” where he pulls a 20-foot long tape worm out of some girl’s stomach? (http://tinyurl.com/65×52x) more shivvers….

david: ‘brainwash it’ = ‘influence it’, doesn’t it? the worm influences the cricket to try out a certain course of action, which it does to it’s own detriment, and the worm’s benefit.

brainwash 101.

ali: i saw a nature segment recently on plants that want to commit suicide (long story). they release a certain chemical, this attracts insects, the insects feed on the plant and kills it. i’m guessing the ‘brainwashing’ bit follows a similar logic – chemical influences to try out new things… ;)